


Cling to This (there's nothing else left)

by luvsanime02



Series: Spooktober 2019 [11]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Gen, Light Angst, Spooktober 2019, seances
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-11
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-12-09 04:08:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20988593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luvsanime02/pseuds/luvsanime02
Summary: Natasha hates that she can't stop Steve from trying to contact Bucky.





	Cling to This (there's nothing else left)

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the October 11th Spooktober prompt: seance.

**Disclaimer: ** I don’t own Marvel comics or characters or movies, and am making no money off of this fic.

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**Cling to This (there’s nothing else left)** by luvsanime02

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Natasha really doesn’t want to be here. Not because she believes, but because she doesn’t.

Still, Steve is her friend, and so Natasha sits around the table and waits for Wanda to emerge from the bathroom. Whatever she’s doing in there to ‘purify’ herself, Natasha has no idea, but she noticed a tendril of smoke curling out from under the door earlier and disabled the smoke alarms, just in case. 

No need to invite more trouble, after all.

Not that Natasha thinks there’s going to be any actual trouble. Not from the seance they’re about to perform, anyway. If anything, the trouble will come after. Steve’s been getting more and more desperate over the years, searching for any hint of contact through any means necessary.

Like all of his other searches, though, this one is still bound to fail. Natasha doesn’t believe in seances, but even if she did... Well. If all of Steve’s other searches, through Ouija boards or mediums or anything else that he can get his hands on, have also failed, then Natasha is convinced of one thing - there’s no contacting someone who doesn’t want to answer.

Not that Natasha even believes in an afterlife. She believes in that about as much as she believes in Steve’s chances of making contact with Bucky Barnes from beyond the grave. But Steve believes. Steve’s spent his whole life around the supernatural, has lamented more than once that if his mother was still alive, she’d have been able to contact Bucky for sure. But she’s not, and so here they are.

Another night. Another waste of time.

At least Wanda is credible, for a given definition of the word. She clearly helps people somehow, according to the many personal testimonies that Natasha has combed through. Steve might be willing to accept anyone’s help by this point, but Natasha is going to give him the best possible chance of success, even if she doesn’t believe.

Even if she hates these days. Not the ceremonies themselves, but because of how tired and withdrawn Steve is afterwards when it inevitably fails. They always do, and always will, in her opinion. 

She doesn’t tell Steve this. He already knows that she’s skeptical, and her presence here is enough. Her willingness to support him is all that he asks for. Which is a good thing, because Natasha can’t give him anything else. She certainly can’t give him hope.

Steve hopes so much, though. So very much. Each and every time, she can see the emotion rising up behind his eyes, despite his best intentions. Steve can’t help himself - he waits and hopes and thinks that, maybe, this time will be different. Honestly, Natasha doesn’t know how he does it.

Tomorrow, he will be sad. He will be withdrawn. It will be a challenge for Natasha to even get him out of bed, to make him eat something. Tonight, he is practically vibrating out of his chair, and actually does stand up to greet Wanda when she comes into the room, speaking with her softly. Natasha lets him. Not that she can stop Steve, anyway. 

These last few years have taught her that, if nothing else. No, Steve will continue to try these pointless ways of contacting someone who died years ago, and Natasha will keep on picking up the broken pieces of his shattered heart after each attempt.

It will be almost an entire year later that both of them will realize exactly why all of Steve’s attempts have ended in failure. You can’t contact the dead if they’re still alive, after all.


End file.
